December

A woman who had her stomach erroneously removed after being misdiagnosed with cancer has won her hospital medical negligence claim and received an undisclosed settlement from Mid Staffordshire General Hospitals NHS Trust.

The 74-year-old woman from Rugeley, Staffordshire, had the surgery in 2004 after doctors told her that a tumour in her stomach was malignant. She later was told by support medical staff that her test results had been misinterpreted and that the tumour was benign.

Due to her operation and long recovery period the woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, has lost a significant amount of weight and suffers from painful digestive problems. She has been unable to carry on in the voluntary work she did before the operation and now requires regular care and assistance.

The undisclosed out-of-court hospital medical negligence claim settlement has been calculated to include the psychological trauma of being told that she had a life-threatening tumour inside of her and the deterioration in her quality of life due to the unnecessary surgery. It will allow the woman to receive a higher level of care in the future and support to help her recover from her emotional ordeal.